More than 30 senators are demanding answers on why the overdose antidote naloxone has spiked in price to $4,500.
The collection of 31 Democratic senators sent a letter to Kaleo Pharmaceuticals seeking answers for why it raised the price of an auto-injector of naloxone from $690 in 2014 to $4,500 now. The increase comes as the federal government moves to implement a new federal law that expands access of naloxone to first responders.
The price hike of the auto-injector Evzio “threatens to price out families and communities that depend on naloxone to save lives.”
Kaleo has responded to news reports of the price hike by saying that the list price is not a true gauge of what consumers pay for the auto-injector, according to the letter.
Kaleo CEO Spencer Williamson said the company received the letter and is in talks with lawmakers to answer the questions.
“With the launch of Kaleo’s enhanced patient access program, more Americans are able to obtain this life-saving product for $0 out-of-pocket than any time in history,” Williamson said.
The senators, led by Democrats Patrick Leahy of Vermont and Al Franken of Minnesota, sought answers about the price hike, including how much it costs to make Evzio.
They also asked for the total reimbursements from the federal government for the past 12 months and what percentage of customers rely on federally funded dollars to get Evzio over the past year.
In an interesting twist, Kaleo last month announced a cheaper version of the allergy drug EpiPen. The maker of the EpiPen, Mylan, had drawn congressional ire last year for raising the price of the allergy drug by 400 percent since acquiring it in 2007.
Kaleo said on Jan. 19 that it would offer its epinephrine injector for a $360 list price, roughly half the $600 list price for the EpiPen.
